1. Field of the Invention
Aspects of the present invention relate to a battery pack that is charged with power generated in an external power generator and supplies discharge power to an external load in parallel with the external power generator.
Further, aspects of the present invention relate to a power receiving device that is internally mounted onto a portable electronic device, charges an external battery with power generated in an external power generator, receives the power generated in the external power generator and power discharged from the external battery in parallel, and supplies the received power to the electronic device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various portable electronic devices (such as mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDA), or the like) have been developed for processing digital information. While the portable electronic device initially employed only a primary battery, the portable electronic device has recently used a rechargeable secondary battery. However, in the case of the portable electronic devices such as a notebook computer, a digital multimedia broadcasting (DMB) receiver, a wireless mobile Internet terminal, etc., the capacity of the existing second secondary battery is insufficient to supply power to the portable electronic devices because the portable electronic devices are generally used for a relatively long period of time and consume a relatively large amount of power. Further, disadvantageously, the discharged secondary battery takes a relatively large amount of time to recharge.
For these reasons, there is a need for a separate power generator to supply power to the portable electronic device with a high power consumption. Accordingly, among the power generators that have been developed hitherto, a fuel cell adapted for a smaller device has been researched.
FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a conventional notebook computer having power supplied from a fuel cell thereto. In FIG. 1, the power generated in the fuel cell is supplied to the notebook computer through a separate external power input terminal without using power from a battery. In FIG. 2, the power generated in the fuel cell is used to charge the battery. In the case shown in FIG. 1, there are problems in that the battery is not usable and an external power receiving device of the existing notebook computer must be changed. In the case shown in FIG. 2, it is inconvenient for a user.
Even though the fuel cell is suitable for supplying the power to the portable electronic device, if the existing portable electronic device changes its structure, there is an economical disadvantage. For example, a battery pack is provided to supply power to the existing notebook computer, and the notebook computer is internally provided with a power receiving device to convert, stabilize, and receive discharge power from the battery pack. Further, an external casing and an internal circuit of the notebook computer have a structure for the battery pack. In this state, to mount the fuel cell onto the notebook computer, if the external casing, a circuit board, and the internal power receiving device of the notebook computer need to be changed, a manufacturer of the notebook computer must accept an excessive increase in the production cost.